Why Isn’t Netflix on Android? Not Secure Enough To Suit Hollywood

The Netflix streaming app has been available on iPhones and iPads for months, and this month was released for Windows 7. Why isn’t it available for Android? Netflix says it’s because they can’t get a secure enough DRM system across Android devices to mollify the studios.

“The same security issues that have led to piracy concerns on the Android platform have made it difficult for us to secure a common Digital Rights Management (DRM) system on these devices,” Netflix said on its blog Friday. “Setting aside the debate around the value of content protection and DRM, they are requirements we must fulfill in order to obtain content from major studios for our subscribers to enjoy.”

The good news is that Netflix says an Android marketplace app should be ready early next year. The bad news is that because there are different flavors of Android on different handsets the app will not be available for all Android phones from the outset.

“… I’m happy to announce we’ll launch select Android devices that will instantly stream from Netflix early next year,” the post says. “We will also continue to work with the Android community, handset manufacturers, carriers, and other service providers to develop a standard, platform-wide solution that allows content providers to deliver their services to all Android-based devices.”

The irony of that two closed platforms beat the major open platform isn’t lost on us. Or, IT professional Douglas Ward, who commented on the Netflix post: “So, just to make sure I am understanding this correctly… The Android Netflix Player has been delayed because there is too much freedom on that platform? Interesting…”